Matthew Morgis

Less Than Jake is a well-known name in the punk scene. With having just about 20 years experience, several label changes, eight full-length studio albums and countless singles and compilations, the five-piece ska band from Gainesville, Fla., will be back in town on Tuesday, Jan. 25 to perform at the Sherman Theater.

There will be one difference that fans may not be used to: Less Than Jake will be touring in support of its newest release titled “TV/EP,” a 16-track, 12-minute collection of the group’s favorite television theme songs and commercial jingles. The EP contains TV themes such as “That ’70s Show” and “SpongeBob SquarePants” and some favorite commercial jingles like Kit Kat, FreeCreditScore.com and Oscar Mayer Wieners.

“We thought it would be neat to revert back and do something wacky and fun,” the band’s guitarist and lead vocalist Chris DeMakes said. “We put our records out by ourselves now, so there is no pressure, and it was just fun to revisit.”

Another change is the fact that this is the second recording the band is putting out by itself without the help of a traditional label.

“In the early days we were putting records out on any label that wanted to put our shit out there,” said DeMakes. “We did the major label game twice, and it was time to move on. We didn’t want to be with a label anymore. It’s at the point now where no one is selling anything, so we figured we would just put our own shit out.”

The lineup for Less Than Jake has been the same one for the past 11 years: DeMakes on guitar, Roger Manganelli plays the bass, Vinnie Fiorello beats the drums, Buddy Schaub plays the trombone and Peter Wasilewski is on saxophone. Wasilewski is the only member that isn’t an original.

“One thing that has helped keep us together is we never stop touring,” DeMakes explained. “A lot of bands that got older starting having families or broke up while we just kept persevering. We kept putting out records that our fans liked, we kept having really good merchandise, and we kept shows affordable, doing things like Warped Tour and getting in front of the next batch of teenagers that never saw our band before helped too.” He added that the band will be a part of this summer’s Warped Tour.

The members of the band all have side musical projects they are involved in as well. DeMakes said that the side projects only help the band.

“It gives something for everyone to focus on other than Less Than Jake,” he said. “Being in a band is all-encompassing, and it is very time consuming. You can get burnt out; we’ve got home from tours before where we just couldn’t look at each other for a few weeks. It’s not because we hate each other, it’s just how it is. Even husbands and wives don’t see each other during the day. When we get on a bus for two months, you can’t even take a shit without someone walking by.”

Less Than Jake is chock-full of fast, fun songs that are easy to sing along with. The group comes up with witty track titles and humorous song lyrics that can instantly turn someone’s mood around.

In addition to the studio work, the band puts on a very energetic live show.

“I think one of our goals now is to just be that go-to band when you want to have a good time,” DeMakes said. “One of the coolest things now is when we someone walks up and says, ‘Hey, I’m the parent of this kid. I don’t really like your music, but do I love your show. It’s so funny and uplifting.’ … The legacy we want is that when you listen to us or see us live, you just can’t help but enjoy yourself and have a good time.”

And for the name of the band, well that is described best by DeMakes himself.

“We used to practice back in high school in one of the guys’ basements. After a while of playing, his bulldog who was named Jake would start to howl because the bass and all the frequencies would start to get to him. Soon enough his mom would yell down that we have stop so we were less than the f—-ing dog.”